Transforming Systems: Accelerating Collaboration Between Youth Homelessness Providers and Youth Policing and Incarceration Systems

Black, Indigenous, and other youth of color (BIYOC) and LGBTQIA youth disproportionately experience homelessness and their race, sexual orientation, gender identity, and homelessness situation significantly increases their risk of encountering police officers and for those encounters to be biased, harmful, and result in a loss of rights and decreased access to housing and employment due to acquiring a criminal record. Those with intersecting identities, BIYOC and LGBTQIA, are most at risk of negative outcomes when they do encounter police and most likely to be incarcerated and face lifetime negative impacts as a result.

This resource guide is intended to accelerate communities’ and systems’ progress in preventing and reducing the incidence of homelessness and negative system involvement among young people.

What We Learned

  • Open the lines of communication to begin to build a positive and strong relationship

  • Include court and probation system partners in your collaborative community and state work to prevent and end youth homelessness.

  • Center youth and young adults with lived experiences of homelessness, placing an emphasis on BIYOC and LGBTQIA young people.